The Nash Family

Inspiring Reads

2011-08-19T12:06:00.000-07:00

We ( the kids and I) are currently reading "The Phantom Tollbooth" by Norton Juster. I love this book. My children don't understand everything being said, however it brings up many things we can talk about. It is so imaginative and fun. This is one of those books that we can laugh with each other about. I so enjoy that. If you haven't read "The Phantom Tollbooth" I highly recommend it. If you've read it long ago, read it again.

Help In The Kitchen

2011-08-18T14:16:00.000-07:00

Something I have been doing in the kitchen lately, is cooking beans each week This is a simple way to make mealtime easier,and often, tastier. I cook beans in the crockpot each week, to freeze. I soak the beans overnight in a large bowl. Now, it depends on the size of your crockpot how much beans you will be able to cook. I have a 5 Qt. crock, so I soak about 5 cups of beans overnight in water with whey ( from a failed adventure in yogurt), or lemon juice. In the morning I will rinse the beans, put them in the crock with water an inch or more above, and cook on low all day. When tender, I rinse the beans and package in freezer bags in the portion size that I need for various recipes. When using the frozen beans from the freezer, I sometimes thaw in the fridge during the day, or add them frozen; they break apart quite well. A simple nutritional help.

Where Did My Sanity Go?

2011-08-17T12:15:00.000-07:00

Okay, today has definitely been a test. With six children age 9 and younger things can get messy quick. I must always stay on top of things. Even so, craziness happens. Children go running off down the street after the dog while you're right in the middle of diffusing a sibling battle, and baking bread, ect. Well, everyone survived, except my ego. I do not choose to have "all these children" because I am a: supermom, ultra patient, energetic, spiritual, or anything else to do with ME. I have these children because God has given them to me. He is working in me everyday through motherhood. He wants them here. I must strive for Him, and so I do. For Him, for the children, for my husband. I do it with a measure of joy (most of the time) because how can I do it any other way? I strive to do all things for His glory, and so I must do my best.

School Begins

2010-08-06T08:15:00.000-07:00

School has began in our household. We are off to a great start this year! We have more activities than I anticipated, but its great. The kids are learning so fast, I just have to keep up! Figuring out more balance this year. I am much more confident about are studies , pace, and just overall goal of our education this year. We are having a great time! Everything doesn't go smoothly, or perfectly. Things are rarely calm and studious ( at least not everyone at the same time) however, I am much more relaxed and focused?! How about you other homeschoolers out there?

Sweet Little Coral

2010-08-06T08:08:00.000-07:00

2010-08-06T08:03:00.000-07:00

We had such a great time at the fair this year!

At The Fair

2010-08-06T07:57:00.001-07:00

June Bugs

2010-06-03T19:13:00.000-07:00

The days have been hot here. The kids have been playing in the water as much as possible. My backyard looks like a jungle. Oh, where did Spring go?

Coral Luna Isra Engeman

2010-03-04T19:47:00.000-08:00

Coral was born on February, 27th 2010 at 5:00 a.m. She weighed 6lbs 14 oz , was 21 1/2 inches long. Chantel is doing great. She is such a cutie ( coral I mean. Well, of course Chantel is a cutie too!)

Solomon's First Birthday

2010-01-22T05:56:00.000-08:00

happy birthday

2010-01-22T05:46:00.000-08:00

The first moment on his lips

2010-01-21T17:23:00.000-08:00

yummy cake

2010-01-21T16:21:00.000-08:00

Balloon fun

2010-01-19T20:16:00.000-08:00

boys balloon fighting

2010-01-19T20:08:00.000-08:00

Discovery Center

2010-01-19T19:27:00.000-08:00

We explored the local Discovery Center last week. The kids always have such a blast there! Just had to post a few pictures of these handsome boys!

Chantel's Baby Shower

2010-01-17T12:22:00.000-08:00

2010-01-17T12:17:00.000-08:00

This is our dear friends baby, Isabel Wangari. Isn't she precious!

Snow, snow, snow....

2010-01-17T11:48:00.000-08:00

If it wasn't freezing cold out, we would have enjoyed playing in it a little more!

2010-01-17T11:36:00.000-08:00

2010-01-11T19:55:00.000-08:00

We Got Our Christmas Tree

2009-11-29T15:47:00.000-08:00

We went to a little farm outside of Springfield, this year to get our tree. It is a White Pine. The first trees we looked at were a little tall. Oliver actually sawed almost the entire thing down his self.

2009-11-29T15:36:00.000-08:00

The guy on the tractor owned the farm that we got the tree from. He was very friendly, and enjoyed the children. His dog's name was Holly.

2009-11-29T15:31:00.000-08:00

With lots of help the job got done! Everyone work as a team!

Tke it Home

2009-11-29T15:26:00.000-08:00

This was a simple sweet Christmas tree hunt. We all had a good time.

Happy Baby

2009-11-29T15:10:00.000-08:00

Solomon doesn't sit still for a minute! He was a wiggler even before he was born. He starting to crawl on his hands and knees now ( not the army crawl so much) and even tries to stand on his own!

Halloween

2009-11-01T11:20:00.000-08:00

We really had fun dressing up this year. Oliver is " Commander Cody",Lily was ""Venom", and a princess, Dan was "snake eyes", Ellis was a Mongolian Ninja, sol was the cutest bumble bee. Oh yes, Andrew was Master Ticklefu! We went to a fall festival at church; not very much fun. The worst part was Oliver puking up hot dogs in his shoe and on the floor. This year we went Trick or Treating in our neighborhood. It was a very nice change. Our neighborhood is becoming a little more family oriented, it seems. The children brought home way too much candy, ughh! They had a blast.

Our favorite season!

2009-11-01T11:11:00.000-08:00

Fall leaves always bring joy! The leaves are really beautiful this year!

Apple sauce, your not the boss

2009-09-19T19:39:00.000-07:00

the day before apple picking it was 60% chance of rain and then when we got up, it was 10% and just before we left at 10:00 it was raining and 70% for the rest of the day. luck had it that it didn't rain very hard and it made the trees sag for easy picking. we picked 5.5 bushels in just over an hour with the five kids (helping!). There was also tons of poison ivy everywhere, literally everywhere, but by the grace of God nobody got any on them. We got home and started cutting. we did a bushel and a half, two gallons of apple sauced and a gallon of apple butter.

Dan, The bug and snake handler

2009-09-19T19:24:00.000-07:00

Dan is not afraid of too many bugs or snakes, Oliver loves them too but doesn't like them enough to get them so he gets Dan, Oliver is getting good at taking pictures of them so I think we are going to start a bug blog.

Hair Cuts

2009-09-10T06:49:00.000-07:00

It was pretty painful to cut the boys longish locks off, but they're still so very handsome! Ellis was less than thrilled to get his head shaved ( he scares easily). They all felt better when it was done.

Solomon

2009-09-10T06:45:00.000-07:00

Solomon is such a smiley little guy!

One of the Cutest boys in the World

2009-07-05T15:11:00.000-07:00

Back to the Zoo

2009-07-05T14:03:00.000-07:00

The weather has been so nice lately, we took another trip to the zoo this week ( or did we come from the zoo). Look closely, Ellis has no fingers in his mouth! Click on the picture to enlarge it.

Happy 5th Birthday Lily!

2009-07-02T07:30:00.000-07:00

Lily is 5 now! She had her very first slumber party this year. Three of her friends spent the night. Girls only ( and two baby boys). They had so much fun! Everyone had a manicure, given by yours truly. They dressed up like princesses and fairies. They caught lightening bugs,ect.

Roaring River

2009-06-28T15:55:00.001-07:00

We went on a fantstic camping trip last weekend at Roaring River State Park here in Mo. Tammy was here for the week, so Mom and her came too. The kids had a blast swimming, fishing, going to hatchery, hiking, exploring, ect. We had a glorious heat wave( temps were around 100). Fortunately, our dog Max is great at guarding our campsite, and chased all the racoons and the like away!p

Roaring River

2009-06-28T15:44:00.001-07:00

Another Tooth Bites The Dust

2009-06-28T15:35:00.000-07:00

VBS

2009-06-27T13:48:00.000-07:00

Oliver and Lily love vacation Bible school. I love to see them get excited about Jesus!

St. Louis Zoo

2009-06-27T12:56:00.000-07:00

The Kids Had a blast

We were there for two days and still didn't see everything

There was even a train that went all the way around the zoo and stopped in different areas so you could walk around for a while and catch the next one as it came through

They even got to pet a cobra

This was the sea lion show at the st. louis zoo. The kids loved it!

Look mom!

2009-03-23T19:37:00.000-07:00

First day without training wheels

Sweet Baby Basket

2009-03-10T13:30:00.000-07:00

I don't think Sol is going to fit in this much longer. Its sweet while it lasts!

Happy 7th Birthday Ollie!

2009-03-09T12:59:00.000-07:00

Oliver had a fun birthday this year. He was able to celebrate with our closest friends, and Grandma and Auntie Chantel. Ollie chose StarWars for his theme this year. Andrew and I made a StarWars cake, they played " pin the light saber on yoda", among other games. Oliver feels very mature now. He insists that he is in second grade.

Sweet Baby Face

2009-02-17T12:16:00.000-08:00

Isn't Sol just adorable?

Burrr!

2009-02-04T19:22:00.000-08:00

What fun sledding is! The kids had a blast. They stayed out in the cold much longer than I thought they would ( their cheeks were nearly frost bitten) !

2009-01-29T19:33:00.000-08:00

Solomon Elias Nash, born Jan. 19 6:37 a.m.

7 lbs. 21 inches

Sleepy heads

2008-11-23T19:05:00.000-08:00

Every morning they wake up and pile into mom and dads bed. Don't they look cozy.

the three artists

2008-11-23T18:56:00.000-08:00

No, not monet, picasso, and pollock but very close. They were doing fall artwork.

I Want You To Cut My Hair!

2008-11-23T18:43:00.000-08:00

Dan is such a " big boy " now. He asked me to cut his ( beautiful curly ) hair the other day. It was bothering him. He wiggles sooo much I decided to just shave it. Now, we can let it grow awhile. He looks so big, now! It's already starting to curl again ( yeah)!

Dan Dan the Fix It Man

2008-11-09T18:47:00.000-08:00

Little Miss Milkyway

2008-11-09T18:32:00.000-08:00

Isn't this the cutest milk mustache you've ever seen?

huck fin

2008-11-01T06:26:00.000-07:00

Oliver was the only one who didn't have winter overalls so I decided to get him some. I found some really nice ones at a farm supply in Mt. Vernon but I had to have Oliver try them on somehow. So we went to a farm supply in springfield and got a few things and tried on. I let Oliver where them around the store. while we were walking around Lily kept asking Oliver why we are not getting the overalls. Then......right by the office and registers, Oliver turns around, throws his hands down and says, in his loud voice,"Lily I told you, I'm just trying them on because dad found them cheaper somewhere else!"

As soon as I got the overalls home Oliver stripped down(completly) threw on the overalls and ran outside to show them to his friend. I think they are his favorite clothes ever.

Pumpkin Faces

2008-10-31T11:10:00.000-07:00

The kids were so excited to carve pumpkins! Its funny that Andrew and I ended up doing most of the scooping, and carving! They all turned out pretty cute. Nobody cut any of their fingers off, either! We roasted the seeds, yummy!

The Pumpkin Press

2008-10-30T20:26:00.000-07:00

Last week we took the kids to the pumpkin patch. The kids wanted to take home a truckload of pumpkins........we didn't. They also enjoyed the five golden retrievers wandering around the farm.

Vacuum

2008-10-30T19:58:00.000-07:00

Trouble

2008-10-30T19:43:00.000-07:00

2008-10-29T19:36:00.000-07:00

Oliver lost his first tooth. He was soooo scared to lose it. Will it bleed? Will it hurt? Andrea got story books about losing teeth to ease the worries. One book it talked about different fables around the world. In mexico they have a tooth mouse and in many countries there is the tooth fairy. Oliver decided that the tooth mouse was going to take his tooth...... and believed it. All of the kids believed Oliver. then one night there it just came out. We put in a small flour sack and put it under the pillow and he was determined to catch the tooth mouse when it came. Lily was sure that she would hear the mouse and would just run right in to Olivers room and catch the tooth mouse. They didn't hear the tooth mouse! When oliver woke up he started moping, "the tooth mouse didn't come". They were all excited and amazed that the tooth mouse was so quiet and that he could put all those coins and candy in that sack.

2008-10-19T19:56:00.000-07:00

how to cut an apple

2008-10-19T04:28:00.000-07:00

fireworks at dads and lads

2008-10-18T22:57:00.000-07:00

Dads and Lads

2008-10-18T22:27:00.000-07:00

Oliver and I had an awesome time at Dads and Lads. He got to shoot the B.B. gun and the 22 and bow and arrow. He also got to throw the tomahawk and knife. there was a fireworks display and lots of making fires and stomping in the woods and last of all a blackhawk helicopter flew in and Oliver spent about an hour going over every inch of the interior.

2008-10-16T19:54:00.000-07:00

as fun as a barrel of apples

2008-10-16T19:33:00.000-07:00

Apple pickin'

2008-10-16T19:19:00.000-07:00

We had a good ol' time. The kids really loved it. We only had an hour and a half to pick 4 bushels(8 paper grocery sacks), next year we will make a day of it.

kris-cross-applesauce

2008-10-11T19:55:00.000-07:00

Who Ever Thought Laundry Could Be So Much Fun?

2008-10-07T19:32:00.000-07:00

Restruction

2008-10-07T19:23:00.000-07:00

I'm putting a new look on a dental clinic. The inside is almost done but the outside has a long way to go

the great (turtle) escape

2008-10-06T19:23:00.000-07:00

turtle relocation program

2008-10-06T19:03:00.000-07:00

Lily found a turtle in our back yard by the swingset. We kept it for a while in our terrarium and then took it to a park called ritter springs out by fantastic caverns. it's a turtle wonderland(second only to the nature center). Lily would only let it go for the possibility that she might be able to come back and see some baby turtles. Luckily the turtle has a hard shell to protect itself from ellis. and we climbed a few trees while we were there.

Hush little baby

2008-10-04T21:35:00.000-07:00

mantis fun

2008-10-04T21:24:00.000-07:00

We had many mantis in our yard this year. The kids love playing with them. We are hoping to have even more next year. Many of the mantis got much bigger than what are on the picture, we just didn't get any pictures of them.

OUT WITH THE OLD, IN WITH THE NEW

2008-08-21T20:36:00.000-07:00

We've known for a while now that Lily feels the new baby is a girl named Sally. She told me that when the baby comes we'll have to get rid of one of the brothers. I informed her that we would not get rid of the brothers, we will just have another new baby. I asked her what would happen if the baby was a boy. She replied," We'll have to get rid of him and get another girl baby." She really does love her brothers, but I think she would really enjoy having another girl around. Yes, she was informed that we would not be " getting rid" of any children. Its funny she would say such a thing, she misses her brothers when they're only gone a couple of hours( at least that's what she tells them).

This is me, this is me, this is me and my energy!

2008-08-20T14:54:00.000-07:00

the wild bunch

2008-08-20T14:43:00.000-07:00

just a few crazy pictures of the nash clan

2008-08-11T19:45:00.000-07:00

catching fire flies is a fun thing to do when it's humid outside. Actually it's the only thing you want to do when it's humid outside. Strange thing is that the more humid it is the more fire flies are out. So at dusk the kids run around like wild banchies and catch lightning bugs. It seem that God always makes pleasant things especially in discomfort.

Swinging at the park

2008-08-04T21:05:00.000-07:00

Fun at the Fair

2008-08-04T20:39:00.000-07:00

We had a blast! We all got free icecream cones(except dan) cotton candy, carmal apples, corn dogs and onion burgers. we watched a parade and a guy on stilts walked over lily in the stroller. Oliver got to be a dairyman and carry a calf and they all got to play in the corn. they rode on rides till WE got sick(especially Oliver, who loved the zipper) We watched a show where a guy wrestled a croc and at the end of the night. they all won noisy toys that lily blasted all the way home.

bringing in the sheaves

2008-08-04T20:27:00.000-07:00

Just after the 4th of july, we pulled up the garlic and some beets. the kids loved to help dig in the dirt and they all got to help us carry the garlic to the picnick table.

learning to walk

2008-06-07T21:26:00.000-07:00

He got a new toy for his birthday and took off.

homemade popsicles

2008-06-07T21:18:00.000-07:00

Lily is very proud of her Popsicles they have been making many different kinds so far this spring.

We Miss You Auntie

2008-05-09T19:57:00.000-07:00

What a wonderful visit we had with you! Thank-you for the blessing of your time. We are missing you already.

Bringin' Down the House

2008-02-25T19:46:00.000-08:00

Oliver was by no means bored at his birthday. Actually, I think all the candy put the kids into a frenzy. Oliver was very good about letting people help him with his presents. I think he was just so preoccupied with opening them that he didn't realize how many people helped him. Ananda is one of lily's best friends. she's just a few months younger than Lily. After most of the people left I started to take the pinata down that I attached to our drop ceiling and I turned the drop ceiling into a fallen ceiling. There was 5 children and 3 adults in the room and somehow no one got hurt. I was quite scary! For some reason there was bricks up there and plaster had fallen from the ceiling and was laying on the grid. Andrea and I had been planning on taking the ceiling down and remodeling the room and were getting geared up for it but ready-or-not there it came.

Bringin' Down the House

2008-02-24T18:43:00.000-08:00

These are the pictures from Oliver's 6th birthday. He really had a blast! The theme was pirates. We worked on a pinata all week. Luckily, we made it strong enough so everyone got a hit before the house came down. All the kids got tons of candy! Chantel made the cake and the cupcakes. It had so much sugar in it that it made our teeth instantly black! We looked like pirates(or ozark natives).

Ellis waves bye-bye

2008-02-24T18:34:00.000-08:00

Apple Results

2008-02-24T18:29:00.001-08:00

Here are the results of our apple/skin experiment. After 1 week, not only the outside of the apple is bad, but the inside of the apple is spongy. Oliver and I ate the good apple up and he refused to take a bite of the other apple.

musical prodigy

2008-02-20T04:00:00.001-08:00

I think Ellis has some musical inclinations he does this every time he gets something that makes sound. He really tries to figure those kinds of things out.

Oliver's Experiment

2008-02-20T03:53:00.001-08:00

This is an experiment that Oliver and I did to see the affects of breaking the skin barrier.

2008-02-16T12:55:00.001-08:00

The ice got thicker and then the snow fell. Not near as bad as last year but it wasn't fun. On the left is what happens when the west meets the mid-west. pine trees don't belong here. This is the reason trees are short and most of them are hardwoods, in the mid-west. The center picture is our garlic. It does just fine in the ice, the ice will melt and water the garlic. It's nice to have something green in the winter, after-all the evergreens won't last. We planted about 150 garlic in november. that might keep us till next spring. The right is our street. one of the better streets in town. If the top of your car is covered in ice it is fun to drive through icy branches. Oliver had a lot of fun smashing the ice off the cars. 3 days after the ice storm a south wind blew and it got up to 50 by noon. one inch of ice came down in about 3 hours. It was crazy. It was falling right on our van but andrea couldn't get out to the van to move it. It was like spear sized hail. the van is fine and so is everybody else. our neighbors had a chimney fire a few days ago and they have to move out for a few weeks while thy fix it and clean.

A Cup Of Tea?

2008-02-15T12:12:00.001-08:00

OOhh boy, tea parties are fun! This is a little lady bug tea set that Lily got from Auntie Tammy and Prabu. Its so cute! We enjoy it whenever we have a little down time and some tasty sweets!

Our Valentine's Day Adventures

2008-02-15T07:53:00.000-08:00

We really went crazy with the treats this valentine's day! Not only did the kids and I make Daddy a cake and cookies, Andrew also bought us chocolates! I think we all suffered sugar shock last night.

Dan Says Yes!

2008-02-15T07:38:00.001-08:00

Well, Dan has decided that his "yes means yes." He started saying it the other day, and with only a few slip ups, has kept it up!

Hanty's Birphday

2008-02-11T19:55:00.000-08:00

Now, who wouldn't love to be sang to by this trio!

anybody need some ice?

2008-02-11T19:31:00.001-08:00

Our annual ice storm has arrived! It is cold here! There's more to come. We really wish you all could be here to enjoy the wonderful weather with us. What a shame you had to miss out! Elizabeth really wanted to go out in her snow pants and eat some ice. Unfortunately, when the ground is a solid sheet of ice 2" thick it makes it tricky to stay on your feet. We are praying the power doesn't go out. There our random rumblings from tree branches falling. Flashes of lights tell us transformers are blowing. As long as we don't have to relocate for 2 weeks we'll be fine!!

A Beautiful Day At The Park

2008-02-09T13:31:00.000-08:00

What a wonderful sunny day. How good it is to get the kids outside after all our illnesses and cold weather! We spent the afternoon running through the park, watching the geese, picking up small treasures ( nuts, shells, seeds, ect..), exploring caves. The wonderful thing about Springfield is the great parks. There's so many of them! There is always something new to experience. Ellis was having a blast on the swing. We got some good belly laughs out of him!

2008-01-10T18:30:00.001-08:00

This was our last morning in WA. They were partied out! We had such a wonderful time visiting with everyone. We are just now getting back into our own time zone mode!

Dan's New Cut!

2008-01-05T19:03:00.000-08:00

I did it! I cut Dan's beautiful curls. Well, not all of them. He's such a handsome boy! He really didn't appreciate the fact that I was trying to get his hair nice and even; he kept squirming and screaming! I got the job done, though!

2007-12-06T13:19:00.001-08:00

Oliver is becoming quite the artist! His favorite things to draw robot aliens and scorpions.

2007-12-06T13:15:00.001-08:00

Lily is getting ready for the big Thanksgiving bash. Now She and Dan can look like twins!

My Little Helper

2007-10-25T19:22:00.000-07:00

2007-10-21T20:39:00.000-07:00